Dom Amore: Red Storm learn the hard way what can happen when UConn’s beast is released 

Everything about this UConn men’s basketball season was screaming for a night like this, screaming for Tarris Reed Jr. to play this way, screaming for a dominant performance against a physical Big East team.

Getting there was a painful process. It always seemed possible, but not inevitable until Wednesday night.

“Most people change in life because of pain,” coach Dan Hurley said, after the Huskies’ 72-40 win over St. John’s at PeoplesBank Arena. “Pain forces people to change. I think the pain of that Creighton game, the pain of the St. John’s game at MSG has lit something with that guy. (Wednesday’s) performance was as good as a center has played for us.”

We’ve been down this road before, of course. In his two seasons since transferring from Michigan to UConn, unlocking the beast in the mild-mannered Reed has been the coaches’ enigma. In the loss to St. John’s in New York on Feb. 6, the Huskies were manhandled by the Johnnies’ big front line. In the shocking loss to Creighton last week, Reed again was barely visible.

UConn lands knockout blows early in historic 72-40 Big East beatdown of St. John’s

Then last Saturday night, with the Huskies’ season going sideways, the Reed they need roared and took over at Villanova, going 5 for 5 from the floor with six rebounds in the second-half surge. In the rematch with St. John’s, Reed and the Huskies staged a complete reversal on every level from the 81-72 loss 19 days earlier, dominating the paint, holding the Red Storm to an unfathomable two field goals in the second half, 2 for 28, obliterated their 13-game winning streak and rendered the normally ebullient Rick Pitino all but speechless.

He spoke for a minute or so outside the Johnnies’ locker room, muttering that the performance was on him. “I’ll make my corrections and move on,” he concluded. “Thank you.”

All of the above, needless to say, comprised quite a feat. Even in the unpredictable world of college basketball and round-robin Big East play, this wasn’t something you saw coming, holding the Times Square Pitinos to half what they scored last time. The big Hartford crowd, though, demanded it, willed it. And suddenly UConn midseason’s crisis is over, and the Huskies are back in business — the championship business. Tied for first with St. John’s, UConn (26-3, 16-2) can talk about grand goals again. This was a statement game, and Huskies’ statement was, “Play as physical as you want, we can hang and bang with it.”

… As long as Tarris Reed Jr. plays like this, Hurley reiterated. “If he wants to be a draft pick, if he wants to win championships, he’ll keep showing up like that,” Hurley said. “If he doesn’t, it hurts our chances and we’re letting each other down. We always needed Tarris to play like an All-American for this to work.”

Reed had to play 30 minutes because his backup, Eric Reibe, got into foul trouble quickly. He scored 20 points, with 11 rebounds, six blocks, three assists, going to the rim with conviction, grabbing the ball with authority, swatting shots down with violence, all of which, Hurley said, is “repeatable.” St. John’s center Zuby Ejiofor, who had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists against Reed and UConn at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6, managed all of six points and four rebounds in Hartford on Wednesday night.

Reed, 6 feet 11, came to UConn to continue the line of strong post play, the chain that’s included Adama Sanogo, Donovan Clingan and Samson Johnson. His first season ended in disappointment, but Hurley did what it took to retain him for this senior year. He’s tried several ways to motivate Reed, the most viral last year being his call for a grizzly bear rather than gentle Kung Fu Panda. But the pain that came with underachieving has done the trick this time, and a good time it was with 17 NBA scouts in the building to watch the Ejiofor-Reed rematch.

“I mean, through pain, through suffering, you get the true testament,” Reed said. “If you come out on top, you go through the fire, you go through the adversity, you come out victorious. I mean, takes a lot coming in, and that’s all credit to the guys around me. The coaches, especially Coach Hurley, I mean he talks about all the time how tough and difficult practice is and being in this UConn uniform.”

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The scary part for UConn, Reed’s dominance in the middle and the defensive switching that forced St. John’s more reluctant perimeter shooters out of their comfort zone, gave the Huskies top shooters any number of open 3-point looks. The Huskies were just 7 for 25 so, yes, this could have been even worse for St. John’s. It was, in short, UConn’s most 2024-like performance since 2024, the 37-3 championship team.

Hurley, though he said he hated to keep putting it all on one person, couldn’t resist. “I mean, this season is going to go the way Tarris goes,” he said. Of UConn’s three losses, one came while Reed was out injured against Arizona, the other two in games he did not play well. If he is healthy, unlocked and this fire remains lit, there is every reason to believe the Huskies’ best basketball is still in front of them.

“That fire lit comes from one man only, that’s Jesus man, I can say it over and over again,” Reed said. “I get all my strength, my confidence, my everything from him. Really just being the word. Stay grounded, stay keeping my faith in him through the ups and downs, through all the trials, and being out there, just playing with joy. I mean, this is my last year of college basketball. Through the wins, through the losses, through the injuries, he’s been there by me. So, my fire comes from him. My passion, my drive, my everything.”

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